I got my CPAP yesterday (for which I am eternally grateful), but I know it will take a little while to get used to it. I’m sure there are Dopers out there on CPAP; I’m looking for suggestions to getting used to the machine/mask, etc. I’ve read several things online, but there’s nothing like personal experience.
Thanks!
I’m specifically looking for tips on how to make the headgear marks go away quickly; also, suggestions as a side sleeper to make it easier.
Funny marks probably mean your mask isn’t fitting right, is too tight, or you’re laying on it. Not much you can do to make the skin recover - when my husband was a hosehead, the marks would pretty much be gone by the time he’d showered, brushed teeth and gotten dressed. If its the straps causing marks, you can get pads for them.
If you’re a side sleeper, there are funny looking pillows designed for CPAP users with cutouts and holes so the pillow doesn’t push against the mask. He had one of these, and it really did help.
Lastly, there are so many kinds of masks. Nasal pillows are probably the least-intrusive style and are well-suited for side sleepers. I think my husband wound up trying five different masks at the sleep center before finding one he could tolerate, and my mother had a similar experience with trying several masks.
My mask and strap marks are gone before I leave the house in the morning. YMMV.
As for comfort in sleeping, you may go through a few masks before you find the exact right one for you. It took me to trying out several different masks before I found one that worked for me. Fortunately, I have an extremely patient DME company that was happy to keep sending a tech out with new masks.
I sleep with the hose wrapped over my bedpost. This keeps me from getting tangled up in it while sleeping. You’re a side sleeper like me, so I sleep with my head closer to the edge of the pillow so that the mask actually hangs off. It’s more comfortable than it sounds. They make specially designed pillows for CPAP users, but they’re expensive.
I don’t sleep wonderfully (my mask wakes me up a couple of times a night), but I certainly wake up now a lot less than I did without the mask.
Hope this helps.
If you have any issues with your mask fitting correctly, ask for a different model mask. I went through 3 types before I found the one that worked for me.
I’m currently using a full face mask, because I’m a mouth breather, but I might try nasal pillows or a nasal only mask as a change. I haven’t gotten tangled in the hose yet. I’m waking up in the middle of the night, but apparently I used to do that regularly to go to the bathroom, but I was completely unaware of it. Now I know.
Ok, but just so we’re clear, I’m on full face masks. I went through 3 different types of full face masks before I found the right one for me. I didn’t mean a different type as in full face to a nasal pillow.
The first 2 types I tried always started leaking in the middle of the night. The 2nd one in fact left a bloody spot on the bridge of my nose, too that hurt like crazy.
Just don’t think that they only offer 1 model of full face mask if you have an issue.
I prefer the nasal pillows, but I have a beard/mustache that prevents most masks from making a good seal.
If you have marks in the morning that don’t fade quickly, your mask is either too tight or the wrong fit.
I sleep on my back and my side - our bed is a sleigh bed which is absolutely perfect because I have my hose draped over the headboard, where it stays completely out of my way all night no matter how much I turn. The only problem is that sometime the air vents onto my wife and wakes her up, so I try to place a pillow between us if I am facing her.
I had strap marks until I switched to a much more comfortable nasal only mask, and I can read in bed while wearing it.
What does it cost you to go through a bunch of masks before you find the right one?
My provider told me that I could get two. The first wasn’t right for me. The second was better, but I still had problems. I simply CANNOT lie comfortably on my back, but any other position was awkward with the mask and hose. I don’t know how many more masks / pillows / whatever I might have had to try, but I would have had to pay for them I guess.
To make things worse, I’m a terribly restless sleeper, tossing and turning all the time. I don’t even know if using a CPAP was going to help with that.
I used the CPAP for 2 or 3 months and then gave up. That was about 5 years ago. I keep thinking I want to try again, as I really need something like that (if it will work), but I don’t think I can afford it if I have to pay for a lot of experimentation.
+1 for this.
I had a different mask and it left marks, even though it fit properly and wasn’t too tight. The nasal pillows type doesn’t leave marks and doesn’t sit against your face like other masks do. Much more comfortable.
Oh, one more thing: the CPAP dries out my nose. They sell moisturizers and gels, but what works best for me is simply Vaseline and a Q-Tip. I smear the Vaseline inside my nostrils and it keeps my nose moist and comfortable.
The mask I use that doesn’t leave any marks is the ResMed Swift FX nasal pillows mask. I’ve used it for a year now and am happy with it. I sleep mostly on my back but often enough on my side.
I have an appointment with the respiratory therapist tomorrow morning. I am having issues with leaks now (not sure why) and, according to the machine, my AHI was over 10 last night. I called and let her know the problems I’m having and she’s having me in to try a nasal mask instead.
echo7tango, that one looks very comfortable. I’ll have to see what they have. I’m currently using the ResMed Quattro FX for Her; I like it well enough but I don’t feel like it’s doing what it needs to be doing. It’s not uncomfortable, I just don’t think it’s working.
Thanks for all the input; trial and error is the only way to go, I guess.
I’m taking my next run at it, too, after a 10 year (?) hiatus. I turned tossing my (full) mask into an Olympic sport - as in how far can I fling it whilst still in bed. I couldn’t afford to keep trying masks and they didn’t have any other method back then, other than to toss the first away and pay for another.
I’m really hopeful that this time will work - and that it doesn’t give me even less rest than I usually get, like last time.
Hope springs eternal.
For those of you who gave up on CPAP years ago, you should definitely try it again. First of all because the machines have gotten so much better – 2 or 3 generations of machines have passed in the last decade. And also, you know, for your health. It can be hard to get used to, but the change in the quality of life is unbelievable if you can learn to tolerate the mask. I simply cannot sleep without it now.
How much have they changed since 2006 or 2007?
Mine has a slow ramp-up phase when it starts; only exerts pressure when I inhale and not when I exhale; includes a little heated water tank to moisturize the air. Is that all the modern stuff of which you write? Is there something even newer and better out there?
My problem was mainly just in the mask and hose, which only seemed to work well if
(a) I lay on my back or maybe kinda sorta on my side, and
(b) lay rather still.
So the problem was with laying with my face more-or-less into the pillow with the mask on, and the stiffness of the hose. Also, as the mask covers only my nose, I have to keep my mouth shut (mostly not a problem), except when my nose gets stuffed up, which happens a lot. But the full-face mask (not really FULL face, but covers nose and mouth) was even more cumbersome to wear.
The ideal CPAP machine would have an air pump nearby the bed, and a non-intrusive mask that I could wear even if I roll around a lot, with no connecting hose between them! It would simply teleport the pressurized air from the machine into my face! (If it could just teleport O[sub]2[/sub] directly into my red blood cells, even so much the better!)
There are some tricks you can use to make the hose more manageable - I tend to find that the weight of the hose tends to pull my nasal pillows out of alignment if I don’t arrange the hose just right. For example when I lie facing away from the CPAP, I have gotten in the habit of tucking the hose between my arm and my torso, with enough play between arm and face that I can move my head but not so much that the hose weight pulls on the mask.
Some ideas from CPAP.com. I’ve seriously thought about the hose clip and / or a hose cover; not as interested in the hose suspension gadgets (I’d trip over 'em or put my eye out).
Oh - and I have the same mask as Echo7tango. It looks to be the lightest, least obtrusive mask on the market. They even have a variant now where you have loops that go over your ears vs the straps over the head; haven’t tried those, I can’t imagine they’d work all that well!!
Well, got a new mask from the RT this morning: the Mirage FX vented nasal mask. It was the most comfortable of the nasal masks I tried on, and on (brief) experimentation, seemed like it would not get in the way much of sleeping on my side.
The only disconcerting thing about it is that I can’t talk while wearing it. It feels really weird when I open my mouth. The RT said that there are users who can learn to talk with it on, but they have to block the airflow. I’m just hoping I don’t end up needing a chin strap. 
Really most people have already said what I would have offered in advice but I’ll toss my own spin on them as well:
Adjusting to CPAP really is 90% mental. I tried CPAP in 2005 originally and to be honest my attitude was crap. I was angry at needing it, at the thought of being a hose head, how it would impede my dating life, etc. Yes, I also had physical challenges like a deviated septum which means i had to use full face masks which as others have mentioned are harder to adjust to and in my experience easier to dislodge and cause blow-outs/leaks. After 3 months of half-assed attempts on my part to use it, I finally just tossed it into a closet and maybe a year later returned it entirely. CPAP fail. Haha
I started CPAP again in 2011. It will be a year now next month. The difference has been attitude. I hit the proverbial “rock bottom” and knew I had to do something or else I’d be dead one way or another. Since 2005 I had my deviated septum fixed so this time I was not only ready (desperate really) for treatment but I now could also try the nasal pillows. I am happy to say I have been 95% or higher compliant with treatment since starting and I feel like a totally different person. I never, EVER, want to sleep without my CPAP and if you knew me in 2005 and my attitude towards CPAP you would understand how HUGE of a change this is.
Nasal Pillows - Definitely the most unobtrusive mask out there. I use the Resmed Swift LT, I find it gives good support for the nasal pillows, allows for adjustment of the angle of the pillows, and I particularly like the head clip that allows the hose to route up and over my head instead of dangling from the nasal pillow area.
CPAP Machine - I use the Resmed S9 Elite and let me tell you, it is light years ahead of the machine I had in 2005. Yes, same features like ramping and humidity control. They are just better in this model and the machine is so damn quiet you cannot hear it at all. Add in the heated Climate Line tubing and condensation and wash-out are almost entirely a non-issue (once or twice it has happened). For me, I made the decision when I went back to treatment that I was not going just take whatever the DME issued. I did research and based upon what I wanted this was the best model for me. The DME had to special order it but that was okay with them, I got no issues from them or the insurance company over it.
Comfort - It took me awhile to get my mask adjusted just right. Unfortunately you do have to do some trial and error to get it to that balance of comfort vs. effectiveness (not dislodging, not leaking, not so tight is smashing your face/nose) and you periodically have to tweak it as things stretch, etc. You also have to be religious about replacing components on schedule, for example in my case replacing nasal pillows. A nasal pillow doesn’t have a tremendously long life and once it hits that point it begins to dramatically lose shape and form resulting in horrible nights sleep due to leaks. Once I change the nasal pillow, I’m back to sleeping soundly all night long.
Hose Management - The best thing I’ve found is to just simply route the hose up over my head and over the headboard of my bed. This in combination with the clip on my headgear keeps the hose up and away from me at all times and allows me to move around at night without any resistance from the hose pulling or twisting or getting caught in anything. I am an active sleeper, by that I mean I roll around a lot from my left side, to my back, to my right side, several times a night. This is the only way I’ve found so far to effectively handle the hose. In fact, I’d probably say this is the #1 thing I’ve done to remove those annoyances with CPAP and the hose.
A few other things…
I have tried several brands of CPAP pillows and have found them all to be really lacking. I know this is a personal thing, people have preferences for pillows and comfort. I’ve yet to find a CPAP pillow that works as advertised and that I could sleep on. Your mileage may vary of course. I find that simply sleeping on my own pillows and using the edges of the pillows works great. When I do roll around, I have begun grasping my mask to hold it in place as i flip around and sink my head back into the pillow - it just helps keep the pillow from dislodging the mask while rolling my face into the pillow when going into a side-sleeping position. It is something I don’t even really exactly notice I do anymore, I just started doing it one night to keep the mask from dislodging and it became habit.
On the attitude thing - Like I said, I really hit a wall and had no choice to do it. I didn’t want to, I wasn’t happy, and I voiced these concerns to my doctor. The doctor is the first step as the first sleep doctor just wasn’t a good fit, didn’t seem to listen to me or my fears/concerns about CPAP, etc. When I found the right doctor it made a huge difference in being able to talk these issues through. Another HUGE factor that helped is this time I didn’t keep it to myself. I mentioned it to some friends, that it was looking like I was going to have to start CPAP and how much I was unhappy about it but I just had to do something… and you know what? I found out 3 of my friends were already on CPAP and I had no idea. A 4th friend had been being nagged by his wife that something was wrong and he was on the fence about going for a sleep study. Breaking down that wall, realizing I wasn’t the only person who had to do this really helped me accept that I had to do it. Yes, we can have people on support forums on the internet also tell you they do CPAP but having it actually be people I knew and socialized with made a big dent in my attitude.
Sooo anyway, this has been a bit long winded and ramble-y. If you have any questions feel free to IM me. Good luck, this isn’t easy but you can do it!
